Barita Investments has purchased a 20 per cent stake in supermarket and distribution company Derrimon Trading.

This minority stake acquisition was made via Derrimon’s recently concluded additional public offering (APO) of shares in which it raised over $4 billion through the sale of just over 1.8 billion shares. The APO was fully underwritten by Barita.

As a result of its 20 per cent stake, Derrimon is now an associate company of Barita Investments. Chief investment officer of Barita’s parent company Cornerstone Financial Holdings, Jason Chambers, declared that the board of Barita and the leadership team of its parent company are very satisfied with this investment.

Chambers, who also serves on the board of Barita, stated that, “Derrimon embodies several of the characteristics we typically look for in assessing investment opportunities.” He pointed to the fact that Derrimon has built up an enviable track record of growth and value creation, noting that the management has demonstrated its ability to achieve scale both organically and through the successful integration of several accretive acquisitions.

Chambers explained that Barita has over the course of the last two plus years established significant capacity to expand its portfolio of investments into sectors that are viable alternatives to traditional ones that are now fully priced in its view and therefore not likely to generate alpha for its shareholders in the medium to long term.

INCREASED INVESTOR CAPACITY

“This minority acquisition should be seen as a by-product of our increased investing capacity as we prudently seek to unearth both value and growth-oriented investment opportunities within the context of the current global investment landscape,” the Cornerstone chief investment officer and Barita director explained.

Continuing, Chambers emphasised that, “we also note the diversification factor that this investment adds to our portfolio as it provides exposure to the real sector via a company which has recently begun an international expansion. At Cornerstone and Barita, our goal is to positively impact the lives of our stakeholders through the tireless pursuit of opportunities that provide solid risk-adjusted returns throughout their investment horizons. We believe this investment is aligned with that ethos and we look forward to collaborating with the team at DTL (Derrimon Trading Limited) to the mutual benefit of our collective stakeholder groups.”

Also commenting on the equity investment was Paula Barclay, general manager of Barita. According to her, “at Barita, we continuously seek out unique strategic opportunities to build shareholder value while balancing the interests of our clients, team members, and other key stakeholders.”

BARITA CONFIDENT IN ITS ASSOCIATION WITH DERRIMON

Barclay expressed confidence with Barita’s association with a company like Derrimon, pointing out that it “will only contribute positively to our overall future performance. Consummating this investment took significant effort from the team at Barita and I would like to take this opportunity to extend my gratitude to them for their hard work.”

Barita Investments, founded by Jamaican female stockbrokerage pioneer Rita Humphries-Lewin in 1977, has the distinction of being the oldest stockbrokerage in Jamaica. Barita had over $290 billion in total assets under management as at its last fiscal year end, September 2020.

Derrimon Trading is a distributor of dry and frozen bulk commodities, operating a retail division through its seven Sampars Cash “N” Carry locations as well as operates the Select Grocers Supermarket located in Upper Manor Park Plaza, St Andrew. Derrimon owns approximately 62.02 per cent of Caribbean Flavours and Fragrances and also owns 100 per cent of Woodcats International, which manufactures and distributes wooden pallets and other by-products of wood.